Palace of Sintra

Sintra, Portugal

The Palace of Sintra is the best-preserved medieval royal residence in Portugal, being inhabited more or less continuously from at least the early 15th century to the late 19th century. It is a significant tourist attraction, and is part of the cultural landscape of Sintra, a designated UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The history of the castle begins in the Moorish Al-Andalus era, after the Umayyad conquest of Hispania in the 8th century, when Sintra had two castles. One was located atop of a hill overlooking Sintra (known as the Castelo dos Mouros, now a romantic ruin).

The second castle was located downhill and was the residence of the Islamic Moorish Taifa of Lisbon rulers of the region. Its first historical reference dates from the 10th century by Arab geographer Al-Bacr. In the 12th century the village was conquered by King Afonso Henriques, who took the 'Sintra Palace' castle for his use. The blend of Gothic, Manueline, Moorish, and Mudéjar styles in the present palace is, however, mainly the result of building campaigns in the 15th and early 16th centuries.

Nothing built during Moorish rule or during the reign of the first Portuguese kings survives. The earliest surviving part of the palace is the Royal Chapel, possibly built during the reign of King Dinis I in the early 14th century. Much of the palace dates from the times of King John I, who sponsored a major building campaign starting around 1415.

Most buildings around the central courtyard date from this campaign, including the main building of the façade with the entrance arches and the mullioned windows in Manueline and Moorish styles, the conical chimneys of the kitchen that dominate the skyline of the city.

The other major building campaign that defined the structure and decoration of the palace was sponsored by King Manuel I between 1497 and 1530, using the wealth engendered by the exploratory expeditions in this Age of Discoveries. The reign of this King saw the development of a transitional Gothic-Renaissance art style, named Manueline, as well as a kind of revival of Islamic artistic influence reflected in the choice of polychromed ceramic tiles as a preferred decorative art form.

King Manuel ordered the construction of the so-called Ala Manuelina (Manuel's Wing), to the right of the main façade, decorated with typical manueline windows. He also built the Coats-of-Arms Room (Sala dos Brasões) (1515–1518), with a magnificent wooden coffered domed ceiling decorated with 72 coats-of-arms of the King and the main Portuguese noble families. The coat-of-arms of the Távora family was however removed after their conspiracy against king Joseph I.

King Manuel also redecorated most rooms with polychromed tiles specially made for him in Seville. These multicoloured tile panels bear Islamic motifs and lend an Arab feeling to many of the rooms inside.

Modern times

In the following centuries the palace continued to be inhabited by Kings from time to time, gaining new decoration in the form of paintings, tile panels and furniture. A sad story associated with the palace is that of the mentally unstable King Afonso VI, who was deposed by his brother Pedro II and forced to live without leaving the residence from 1676 until his death in 1683.

The ensemble suffered damage after the 1755 Lisbon earthquake but was restored in the 'old fashion', according to contemporary accounts. The biggest loss to the great earthquake was the tower over the Arab Room, which collapsed. At the end of the 18th century, Queen Maria I redecorated and redivided the rooms of the Ala Manuelina.

During the 19th century, Sintra became again a favourite spot for the Kings and the Palace of Sintra was frequently inhabited. Queen Amélia, in particular, was very fond of the palace and made several drawings of it. With the foundation of the Republic, in 1910, it became a national monument. In the 1940s, it was restored by architect Raul Lino, who tried to return it to its former splendour by adding old furniture from other palaces and restoring the tile panels. It has been an important historical tourist attraction ever since.

References:

Comments

Your name



Details

Founded: 14th century
Category: Palaces, manors and town halls in Portugal

Rating

4.5/5 (based on Google user reviews)

User Reviews

John Goerzen (4 years ago)
Built in the 1800s. Tries to be a monument expressing several cultural and historical aspects of Portugal. Interesting, whimsical architecture. We were there in February and it is the winter season. Not terribly crowded but full. Gardens and natural scenery would be spectacular in high season but then crowds would be huge. Parking is not readily available, take a tour bus or similar. Go directly to line for interiors viewing first if you bought the extra ticket
Anna Szumańska (4 years ago)
The most beautiful palace in Sintra! Less visited by tourists, full of authenticity and history, with magnificent chimneys that distinguish the building from a distance. absolutely amazing wooden ceilings and original furniture.
Mark McConachie (4 years ago)
Wonderful ancient palace set beneath a hill and castle that loom over the town. It is about 12mins walk from the train station. Compared to the much farther away Pena Palace which is 2km away on the next hill, this comes second on the wow factor, but is worthwhile visiting. Recommended.
Soria Pen (4 years ago)
It’s a matter of if you like palace or not probably. Few things to see inside. I don’t think it’s worth 10€ for it. First time of my ever life I had stayed that short time in some place. So I would recommend you to double check if it matches your interest
Susan Marsh (5 years ago)
To be honest, apart from the two amazing conical chimneys, the Palace from the outside looks pretty under whelming. The good thing about seeing it was it is located right off the small main square in Old Sintra. NO WALKING UP HILLS to get to it!! Once inside though the whole Palace just keeps on giving with room after room of incredible decor. There are no gardens to see as such but cool interior patios. The conical chimneys are in the basement kitchen and are of a Moorish design to take away the heat - so air con' way before its time.
Powered by Google

Featured Historic Landmarks, Sites & Buildings

Historic Site of the week

Monte d'Accoddi

Monte d"Accoddi is a Neolithic archaeological site in northern Sardinia, located in the territory of Sassari. The site consists of a massive raised stone platform thought to have been an altar. It was constructed by the Ozieri culture or earlier, with the oldest parts dated to around 4,000–3,650 BC.

The site was discovered in 1954 in a field owned by the Segni family. No chambers or entrances to the mound have been found, leading to the presumption it was an altar, a temple or a step pyramid. It may have also served an observational function, as its square plan is coordinated with the cardinal points of the compass.

The initial Ozieri structure was abandoned or destroyed around 3000 BC, with traces of fire found in the archeological evidence. Around 2800 BC the remains of the original structure were completely covered with a layered mixture of earth and stone, and large blocks of limestone were then applied to establish a second platform, truncated by a step pyramid (36 m × 29 m, about 10 m in height), accessible by means of a second ramp, 42 m long, built over the older one. This second temple resembles contemporary Mesopotamian ziggurats, and is attributed to the Abealzu-Filigosa culture.

Archeological excavations from the chalcolithic Abealzu-Filigosa layers indicate the Monte d"Accoddi was used for animal sacrifice, with the remains of sheep, cattle, and swine recovered in near equal proportions. It is among the earliest known sacrificial sites in Western Europe.

The site appears to have been abandoned again around 1800 BC, at the onset of the Nuragic age.

The monument was partially reconstructed during the 1980s. It is open to the public and accessible by the old route of SS131 highway, near the hamlet of Ottava. It is 14,9 km from Sassari and 45 km from Alghero. There is no public transportation to the site. The opening times vary throughout the year.